(Credit: Bernd Uhlig) “Aida,” as we know, was supposed to be Giuseppe Verdi’s last opera. At least, he thought so. Along with his powerful “Requiem,” and all its operatic overtones, his very final work to come, the moving and gentle “Quattro Pezzi Sacri” – “Aida” was supposedly the prolific master’s operatic swan song. But, well, that is certainly not what {…}
The Opéra de Paris has announced a cast change for its Oct. 10, 2025, performance of “Aida.” The company said that “Saioa Hernandez, who is ill, has canceled the performance on October 10, 2025. The role of Aida will be performed by Ewa Plonka for this performance.” This is the second performance that Hernandez canceled following the Oct. 7 performance, {…}
The Teatro alla Scala has announced its 2025-26 season. The season opens with Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk,” featuring Alexander Roslavets, Sara Jakubiak, Najmiddin Mavlyanov, Alexander Kravets, Valery Gilmanov, Yevgeny Akimov, Jirí Rajniš, Oleg Budaratskiy, Ekaterina Sannikova, Goderedzi Janelidze, Elena Maximova, Natalya Romaniw, Huanhong Li, and Vasyl Solodkyy. Riccardo Chailly conducts the new production by Vasily Barkhatov. Performance Dates: Dec. {…}
The Opéra National de Paris has announced its 2025-26 season. The season opens with Puccini’s “La Bohème,” featuring Nicole Car, Yaritza Véliz, Charles Castronovo, Joshua Guerrero, Andrea Carroll, Étienne Dupuis, Xiaomeng Zhang, and Alexandros Stavrakakis. Domingo Hindoyan conducts. Performance Dates: Sept. 12-Oct. 14, 2025 Cecilia Molinari leads Handel’s “Ariodante” alongside Luca Tittoto, Jacquelyn Stucker, Sabine Devieilhe, Rupert Charlesworth, Christophe Dumaux, {…}
The Bayerische Staatsoper has announced its 2025-26 season. Premieres Maurizio Benini conducts Verdi’s “Rigoletto” in a new production by Barbara Wysocka. Bekhzod Davronov, Igor Golovatenko, Ludovic Tézier, Serena Sáenz, Nadine Sierra, Riccardo Fassi, and Elmina Hasan star. Performance Dates: March 7-24, 2026 & July 28 & 31, 2026 Lotte de Beer directs a new production of Gounod’s “Faust” with Jonathan {…}
The Savonlinna Opera Festival has unveiled its 2025 season. First up is the “550 Years of Olavinlinna” anniversary concert. Erkki Lasonpalo conducts. Soloists will be announced at a later date. Performance Date: July 3, 2025 Ludovic Tézier, Saioa Hernández, Goran Juric, and Johan Krogius headline “Macbeth.” Lorenzo Passerini conducts Ralf Långbacka’s production. Vilppu Kiljunen will be the revival director. Performance Date: July {…}
(Photo credit: Philipp Rohner & Kyrre Kristoffersen) Italian conductor Alvise Casellati will lead the annual Opera Italiana is in the Air concert at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. For the third year, professional opera singers and a full orchestra will perform under the baton of Casellati at the Nation’s capital. This year, featured performers in “Opera’s Unexpected Moment” include soprano {…}
The Washington National Opera is set to present a new production of Puccini’s “Turandot.” The new production is set to present a new ending by two-time Grammy Award winner Christopher Tin and Emmy Award winner Susan Soon He Stanton. Artistic Director Francesca Zambello directs the new production and Italian conductor Speranza Scappucci leads the WNO Orchestra. The cast will include Ewa {…}
UPDATE: Buratto never officially joined the Requiem due to her schedule due to “Suor Angelica” rehearsals at the Wiener Staatsoper. She never canceled. The Wiener Konzerthaus has announced cast changes for the Verdi Requiem on Oct. 28, 2023. The company said that Eleonora Buratto would not participate in the performance due to scheduling reasons. As a result, Ewa Płonka will take over {…}
The Teatro Real de Madrid has announced a cast change for its July 17 performance of Puccini’s “Turandot.” The company said that Maribel Ortega will sing the title role replacing Ewa Płonka. In an Instagram post, Płonka added that she had a “swollen larynx that resulted in a complete loss of voice.” Ortega has interpreted the role of Turandot at {…}
Credit: Teatro Real Teatro Real closes the 2022-23 season with 17 performances of Puccini’s “Turandot.” It is a revival of their own Robert Wilson production, which premiered at Teatro Real in 2018, featuring three different casts. The opera will be screened live in several squares all over Spain, will be shown on RTVE (The main Spanish Tv channel), and will {…}
